In news

• Goa and Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu (D&NH and D&D) have become the first ‘Har Ghar Jal’ certified State and UT in the country respectively.
• People from all the villages have declared their village as ‘Har Ghar Jal’ through a resolution passed by Gram Sabha, certifying that all households in the villages have access to safe drinking water through taps, ensuring that ‘No One is Left Out’.

Key Points

• Village Water and Sanitation Committee (VWSC) or paani Samiti has been constituted in all the 378 villages of Goa and 96 villages of D&NH and D&D.
  • It is responsible for the operation, maintenance, and repair of water supply infrastructure developed under the ‘Har Ghar Jal’ programme.
• All 2.63 lakh rural households of Goa & 85,156 of Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu have access to potable water through tap connection.
• All schools, Anganwadi centres, public institutions including Gram Panchayat buildings, healthcare centres, community centres, ashram shalas, and other government offices have now access to potable water through tap connection.

Process of Certification

• At first, the field engineer submits a completion certificate regarding the water supply scheme to the Panchayat during the Gram Sabha meeting. 
• The villages confirm through a resolution of the Gram Sabha, that every household is getting a regular supply of water of prescribed quality and not a single household is left out. 
• They also confirm that all schools, Anganwadi centres and other public institutions are also getting tap water.

Content Source link:

• https://www.business-standard.com/article/current-affairs/goa-becomes-first-state-to-be-har-ghar-jal-certified-says-pm-modi-122081900466_1.html,
• https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1852929,

Image Source Link:

• https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1852929

In News:

The UN nations have recently met to push for the treaty to govern the use of high seas.

About the News:

• The Arctic has been heating up at a record rate while plastic pollution is "choking the seas," fish stocks are being depleted, acidity rates are rising and ocean waters are warming and rising.
• In this regard, the United Nations has kicked off a conference recently aimed at creating a new, legally-binding global treaty to govern the use of the high seas.
• The treaty will help conserve biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ) that lie outside countries’ 322-kilometre exclusive economic zones.
• This is the fifth round of negotiations on the international instrument under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) since 2018.
• Previously, an Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) session has been held by the UN to elaborate on the text of the legal instrument for protecting BBNJ under UNCLOS.
• Many nations have however raised concerns over how such laws would impact their ability to fish and mine – especially given the rising cost of energy and the rush for minerals used in the production of batteries and other technology in high demand.

Major highlights of the bill:

• Background: UNCLOS was adopted in 1982 and laid the foundation of ocean governance, with the first single set of rules for oceans and seas.
• Major instruments: Once completed, there will be three instruments under the Convention:
  • 1994: Agreement on the implementation of rules under UNCLOS
  • 1995: UN Fish Stocks
  • 2022: The treaty on biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ)
• Focus area of the discussion:
  • Genetic resources: The discussions will focus on marine genetic resources, including issues on sharing benefits.
  • Management of marine areas: Steps to improve area-based management tools of marine protected areas, environmental impact assessments, capacity-building, transfer of marine technology and cost-cutting issues.
  • Focus areas: The discussions target the collection of marine genetic resources (MGRs) of areas beyond national jurisdiction, with varying views on ways to restructure this part of the agreement.
  • Protecting knowledge: The provision of access to traditional knowledge of indigenous peoples and local communities associated with marine genetic resources on the high seas.

Importance of the Treaty:

• Defining high seas: It refers to international waters — sea space that doesn't fall within any nation's sovereign or extended maritime zone.

• Area: About two-thirds of the world's water is considered high seas and, as of today, only about 1% of that area is covered by international agreements on fishing and other resource extraction.
• Rule-based monitoring: The high seas treaty, if agreed, would create a new global body to enforce rules laid out to protect about 30% of the world's oceans by 2030.
• Marine Protected Areas: The draft treaty would establish patches of ocean known as Marine Protected Areas, where there would have to be environmental impact studies before any deep-sea mining or exploration could take place.
• Better protection: It would extend international law beyond countries' territorial waters and exclusive economic zones (EEZs), which extend 200 miles from any nation's coastline, to cover a major portion of the currently unprotected waters from threats such as overfishing and unchecked seafloor mining.

Source:

• https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/environment/un-meet-begins-over-treaty-to-govern-use-of-high-seas-84367#:~:text=Published%3A%20Wednesday%2017%20August%202022&text=United%20Nations%20member%20states%20have,use%20of%20marine%20biological%20diversity

Image source: 

• http://iilss.net/legal-status-of-the-territorial-sea-international-law-of-the-sea-losc-cases/

In News

TDB-DST (Technology Development Board – Department of Science and Technology) entered a new domain by funding its first ever Aquaculture project using state-of-the-art Israeli technology for the production of Tilapia Fish.

What is Aquaculture?

• Aquaculture refers to the production of aquatic animals and plants under controlled conditions
• According to Food and Agriculture Organisation(FAO),aquaculture is understood to mean the farming of aquatic organisms including fish, crustaceans, molluscs and aquatic plants
• It can be classified into the following categories

• Freshwater aquaculture
• Coastal aquaculture
  • Sea farming
  • Brackish water aquaculture

Fishery Sector in India

• It refers to the capture of aquatic organisms in marine, coastal and inland areas.
• Marine and inland fisheries, together with aquaculture, provide food, nutrition and a source of income to millions of people around the world, from harvesting, processing, marketing and distribution.

Significance

• The fishing Sector in India, with about 7.7% of the global fish production, is the third largest fish-producing country and the second largest aquaculture fish producer in the world.
• The country is also home to more than 10% of the global fish biodiversity and is one of the 17-mega biodiversity-rich countries.
• Fisheries and aquaculture witnessed a manifold rise in their production during the past decades, from 5 lakh tons in 1950-51 to 142 lakh tons in FY 2019-20.
• The sector provides livelihood to about 16 million fishers and fish farmers at the primary level and almost twice the number along the value chain, and has enough potential to generate income, employment, growth in subsidiary industries, and earn foreign exchange for the nation.
• The share of the fisheries sector in the total GDP (at current prices) increased from 0.40% in 1950-51 to 1.07% of the total GDP in 2017-18.
• The sector has contributed about 1.24% to the country’s Gross Value Added (GVA) and over 7.28% to the agricultural GVA.
• The fisheries sector has witnessed three major transformations in the last few years:
  • The growth of inland aquaculture, specifically freshwater aquaculture.
  • The mechanization of capture fisheries.
  • The successful commencement of brackish water shrimp aquaculture.

Challenges facing the Fisheries Sector in India

Technical Challenges

• Overproduction focusing on fewer species results in an overstock of specific fish species, lowering prices and increasing volatility.
• In India, there are no additional aqua feed-consuming species or high-value fish that should be considered when introducing new species.
• For example, tilapia farming has yet to take off in the country. Inadequate hatchery technology for new species introduction, which could include freshwater, brackish, and marine species
• Diversification of species will assist to keep costs stable while also driving up demand for formulated aquafeeds.
• Classical freshwater fish farming methods – large ponds, no water exchange, no draining, and no bottom sediment removal – are still in use, which can lead to disease-promoting conditions.

Economic Challenges

• Poor quality fish delivered in poorly managed production systems has an impact on customer acceptability and preferences.
• The lack of proper cold chain and distribution systems has an impact on the availability and marketing of perishable items.
• Deep-green Pond Water: The presence of excessive algae in the water, which is the result of an oversupply of nutrients such as phosphorus, causes the water to turn a deep green colour, especially when the water is warm and the weather is calm. Blooming problems are most common during the summer months.
• Red Layer on Pond Water: Excess iron or EU glenoid algae in the pond water cause the red layer on the water’s surface to appear. As a result, food and oxygen are scarce in the water.
• Oxygen depletion in pond and fish gasping for air: Fish begin to die when there is a severe and long-term lack of oxygen, and dead fish have their mouths wide open.

Future Challenges

• Meeting growing demands for seed, feed and fertilizers, in terms of quantities and quality Increasingly severe competition with other resources (land/water/feed) users; Deteriorating quality of water supplies resulting from aquatic pollution; Climate change Weak marketing and extension network
• Overfishing: This term refers to the practice of catching fish faster than they are able to reproduce. It leads to removing these prey species from the marine environment impacting predators and the aquatic ecosystem.
• Bycatch: Bycatch refers to the fish, seafood, turtles, seabirds and other animals that are not targeted by fisheries, but are incidentally caught by broad-sweeping fishing mechanisms like gillnets and bottom trawls.
• Damage to the ocean floor: Bottom trawls are capable of destroying anything in their paths.
• Illegal Fishing: As fish species become more depleted and demand for products rises, there have been increases in illegal fishing. This takes many forms, including keeping undersized fish, fishing in territories without permission, catching fish off-season, failing to record catch information, and using illegal procedures.
• Climate Change

Government Initiatives for Fishery Sector

• Fisheries and Aquaculture Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF)
• Blue Revolution
• Extension of Kisan Credit Card (KCC)
• Marine Products Export Development Authority.
• Seaweed Park

Content Source Link:

• http://tdb.gov.in/about-tdb-2/,
• https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1852812, 

Image Source Link:

• https://www.indiamart.com/proddetail/live-organic-nile-tilapia-fish-gift-20136896812.html

• Context: The government has awarded the Geographical Indication tag (GI) to ‘Mithila Makhana’, in a bid to help farmers get the maximum price for their produce.
• Mithila Makhana is also simply known as ‘makhan’.

• Its botanical name is ‘Euryale Ferox Salisb’ and it is a special variety of aquatic fox nut.
• It is believed that the food is famously consumed during Kojagara Puja by Maithil Brahmins,who celebrate it for newly-married couples.
• Makhana is generally hailed as a healthy Indian snack.  According to the Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge, these seeds are edible after they are processed.
• They grow on a leaf in a pond, before they are collected, washed and sun-dried for hours. After that, they are roasted in a pan at a high flame. Following this, their outer shells are broken and the white puff comes out.
• It is said to be low in cholesterol, fat and sodium, and also an ideal weight-loss snack as it is low in calories.
• GI tag is a tag that ensures no one other than those registered as authorised users is allowed to use the popular product name.
• In other words, it is a “sign used on products that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities or a reputation that are due to that origin”. In order to function with the GI tag, “a sign must identify a product as originating in a given place”.

Source:

• https://indianexpress.com/article/lifestyle/food-wine/bihar-mithila-makhana-gi-tag-healthy-ingredient-snack-8105437/

Image source:

• https://indianexpress.com/article/lifestyle/food-wine/bihar-mithila-makhana-gi-tag-healthy-ingredient-snack-8105437/

• Context: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has begun work for auctioning of spectrum in four bands: the two crucial satellite bands, which enable broadband services, and the contentious E band and the V band.
• While DoT plans to auction the bands for backhaul and mobile services, it also suggests that certain quantum in the V band should be delicensed, or allotted without auctions, for indoor coverage.

• For outside mobility services and backhaul, companies must buy the spectrum in an auction.
• The spectrum in E and V bands has the potential to provide high-speed broadband services, especially in remote areas and for better in-building coverage.
• The decision around the allocation of the E and V bands spectrum has been a contentious one between technology and telecom firms.
• Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) has been seeking auction of spectrum in both the bands, Broadband India Forum (BIF), which counts Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Cisco etc, as its members, wanted to delicense of these bands.
• Delicensing of the lower V band is a well-established international best practice, recommended by TRAI.
• Telecom operators are, however, apprehensive that if these bands are given administratively, technology companies may enter the broadband market and utilise the free-of-cost spectrum to provide services to consumers.

Source:

• https://www.business-standard.com/article/economy-policy/trai-paper-in-the-works-for-auction-of-satellite-bands-two-others-122081801178_1.html

Image source:

• https://www.esa.int/Applications/Telecommunications_Integrated_Applications/Satellite_frequency_bands

• Context: The Bardhaman municipality has decided to erect a statue of an erstwhile maharaja in front of the landmark Curzon Gate in the city.
• Of all the Viceroys of India, Curzon is possibly the most criticised — he is the man who partitioned Bengal in 1905, and triggered a wave of Bengali nationalism that contributed to the wider Indian national movement.

• He was also one of the more openly imperialist viceroys and a man who saw Britain’s rule over India as critical to the survival of the empire.
• In 1900, Curzon famously stated, “We could lose all our dominions and still survive, but if we lost India, our sun would sink to its setting.”
• He served as Under-Secretary of State for India (1891-1892), and for Foreign Affairs (1895-1898), before being appointed Viceroy of India in 1899.
• Curzon created a separate Muslim majority province of the North-West Frontier Province, sent a British expedition to Tibet, established a separate police service, and established the Archaeological Survey of India, in order to study and protect historical monuments. 

Source:

• Explained: Who was Lord Curzon, the Viceroy of India who partitioned Bengal in 1905?

Image source:

• https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Curzon,_Lord

• Context: Scientists from the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences have recently shown how a transcriptional regulator can boost grain yields and shorten the growth duration of rice.
• The report has pointed out that giving a Chinese rice varietya second copy of one of its own genes has boosted its yield by up to 40%.

• When the second copy of a single gene (called OsDREB1C) is added to rice, it improves photosynthesis and nitrogen use,speeds up flowering and absorbs nitrogen more efficiently-offering larger and more abundant grains.
• The change helps the plant absorb more fertilizer, boost photosynthesis, and accelerates flowering, all of which could contribute to larger harvests.

Source:

• https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/improving-rice-yield-with-an-additional-gene/article65779699.ece#:~:text=Credit%3A%20Getty%20Images-,Adding%20a%20second%20copy%20of%20one%20of%20its%20own%20genes,such%20as%20rice%20and%20wheat.

Image source:

• https://www.isaaa.org/kc/cropbiotechupdate/article/default.asp?ID=15895

Essence - The article opines that India’s efforts to switch to clean energy and produce 500 GW of energy from renewable sources is an opportunity and not just a burden. This is so because it will decrease India’s dependence on fossil fuel imports and will help India utilize renewable resources (abundantly available) to the fullest. The transition will help India boost local manufacturing, reduce energy source (price) volatility, and log innovation gains. The cumulative effect of these will be greater economic growth and development.

The transition and the ongoing research will also help India innovate in technologies related to improving battery storage and efficiency, air capture, and Tracking carbon emissions in real-time. All of these are the need of the hour and India is intensely searching for these solutions and has the willingness to experiment and implement them at a mass scale.

At the same time, the article acknowledges that India has been one of the lowest per capita emitters and needs funding and support from the alpha emitters like the US and Europe.

Why should you read this article?

• The article is part of a series before the upcoming Climate Tech Convening India, an event organized by the Environmental Defence Fund, and thus gives an insight into the agenda and discussions scheduled for the event.
• The article helps you look at the ongoing shift to clean energy from a positive angle while acknowledging the economic injustice and North-South divide.
• The article is a good read to understand the opportunities that India has in shifting from fossil fuels to renewable sources of energy.

Source:

• https://www.livemint.com/opinion/online-views/indias-clean-energy-transition-plays-to-the-country-s-strengths-11661186221035.html

Essence – The editorial talks about how far Anganwadi centres are utilizing their potential to be a centre of learning. It mentions the ICDS scheme under which these centres have been established. It also points out some of the obstacles like non-convergence of expectations of parents and the program designer, lack of trust from the parent end, etc. It also highlights the role of age-appropriate exposure to learning and language and the adverse impact of rote learning on the developing brains of children.

Towards the end, it suggests that the focus should be on devising a middle path between what parents expect for their child at Anganwadi and what ought to be by roping them as a stakeholder during the program inception stage. It concludes with the idea of promoting Jan Bhagidari and embracing the power of ‘abhibhavaak-bhagidari’ (participation of parents) to activate Anganwadi 2.0.

Why should you read this editorial

• To know about the ICDS and Anganwadi scheme.
• To know about the role these center can play in shaping the future of our nation by reforming learning system for childern.

Source:

• https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/not-centres-of-learning-yet/article65797089.ece

Background

While it is not viable to reduce the number of vehicles on the road, with the increased availability of various electric vehicles (EVs) in the market today, replacing ICE vehicles with e-bikes could potentially reduce pollution levels.

E-Bikes in Delhi

• Generally speaking, e-bikes are bicycles with a battery-powered “assist” that comes via pedalling and, in some cases, a throttle.
• Yulu, Zypp, Planet Green Bikes, and Green Ride are some of the companies offering rental e-bikes services in Delhi.
• The environmental benefits of riding an electric Bike include:

• • Zero emissions, as these do not use fossil fuels.
  • As these are very light, they save the roads from damage.
  • Offer a greener transportation option, not forgetting the freedom of movement without a schedule restriction and the ability to travel alone if desired.
  • As these require a lesser capacity to operate, their batteries last more, thereby reducing wastage and increasing sustainability.
• The faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles in India (FAME II) scheme, came into effect in 2019 to help hasten the transition to electric vehicles to curb air pollution and reduce India’s dependence on oil imports.
  • Recently, the government decided to increase subsidy on electric two-wheelers by 50% to ₹15,000 per kWh under the scheme, to bring down the cost of e-bikes.
• Also, each state offers several policies that ensure that the prices of electric two-wheelers are reduced, such as:
  • Telangana: 100% exemption on registration and road tax for all categories of electric vehicles.
  • Maharashtra: The state offers an incentive of Rs.5000/kWh for all vehicle categories.
  • Gujarat: offers the highest subsidy of Rs.10,000/kWh among all the states

Quote

We must shift our thinking away from short-term gain toward long-term investment and sustainability, and always have the next generations in mind with every decision we make - Deb Haaland

Source:

• Going Electric: 5 Places To Hire E-Bikes For As Low As Rs 10/Hour in Delhi
• States Offering Most Subsidies for Electric Vehicles

Image source:

• https://twitter.com/oliverbruce/status/1404279621823066116/photo/1